AbstractThe cloud-in-cloud problem is studied in the context of the extension to non-Gaussian density fields of the PS approach for the calculation of the mass function. As an example of a non-Gaussian probability distribution function (PDF), we consider the chi-square distribution with various degrees of freedom. We generate density fields in cubic boxes with periodic boundary conditions, and then determine the number of points considered collapsed at each scale through a hierarchy of smoothing windows. We find that the mass function we obtain differs from that predicted using the extended PS formalism, particularly for low values of σ and for those PDFs that differ most from a Gaussian.

Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences

Institute of Astrophysics and Space Sciences (IA) is a new but long anticipated research infrastructure with a national dimension. It embodies a bold but feasible vision for the development of Astronomy, Astrophysics and Space Sciences in Portugal, taking full advantage and fully realizing the potential created by the national membership of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO). IA resulted from the merging the two most prominent research units in the field in Portugal: the Centre for Astrophysics of the University of Porto (CAUP) and the Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics of the University of Lisbon (CAAUL). It currently hosts more than two-thirds of all active researchers working in Space Sciences in Portugal, and is responsible for an even greater fraction of the national productivity in international ISI journals in the area of Space Sciences. This is the scientific area with the highest relative impact factor (1.65 times above the international average) and the field with the highest average number of citations per article for Portugal.